That evening, in a private room at a high-end restaurant, Qin Chuan met several people from Jinrun Development.
The person in charge of their operations in Yongnan County was named Ding Yi, a man in his early forties who was very talkative and cheerful.
Ye Qingping was also present. Qin Chuan had brought his elder brother Qin Yang, second brother Qin Gang, and Zheng Chengdao, among others.
With so many men gathered, and after a few drinks, the atmosphere became completely lively.
Jinrun Development couldn't possibly establish itself in Yongnan County on its own; they needed a qualified local contact to handle many matters.
Qin Chuan's group fit these requirements perfectly, making their cooperation an ideal match.
Especially with County Magistrate Ye Qingping acting as the intermediary, their partnership carried even more weight.
The banquet concluded with everyone satisfied and happy.
During the meal, Ye Qingping, as the county magistrate, left early. His position prevented him from staying too long. After Ye Qingping departed, the men became even more unrestrained.
Qin Gang suggested they all go for a massage to relax.
Every man understood the implied meaning of "massage."
This further escalated the celebratory mood.
The next day, Qin Chuan went to work as usual.
The weather was still cold, and the construction of the apartment buildings and the sand quarry had not yet begun. Therefore, the previous night's meeting with Jinrun Development was merely an introduction to lay the groundwork for future cooperation.
Over the past couple of days, the advertising campaign for the Shendun storage lockers had been showing increasingly significant results. Customers traveled long distances almost daily to visit and inspect the products.
On busy days, they received twenty to thirty visitors, while on slower days, it was around five or six.
Among those who came to inspect the quality of Shendun storage locker products and viewed the flagship store, ten out of six were willing to try franchising, regardless of whether they were truly impressed by the quality and the store, or for other reasons. The success rate was an astonishing sixty percent.
This was an incredibly high figure, considering it was for franchising, not wholesale or retail.
The associated profits were substantial. The franchise fee of five thousand yuan was the smallest portion; Qin Chuan's company also profited from renovation costs.
Once the products were officially launched, assuming one hundred franchised stores, each would purchase an average of one hundred thousand yuan worth of products from Xinhua Electronics Factory. This translated to about five to six hundred units per store, which wasn't an excessive amount.
However, even with this, it represented a turnover of ten million yuan!
After deducting costs, the cost and profit were almost a fifty-fifty split, meaning Xinhua Electronics Factory would earn five million yuan.
A staggering profit of five million yuan was an absolutely considerable sum.
Since officially resuming work after the Lunar New Year, only a week had passed, and thirty-two franchisees had already signed contracts with Xinhua Electronics Factory.
They were now about a third of the way towards their goal of one hundred franchisees.
What Qin Chuan needed to do now was to further accelerate production. Last year, despite their hard work, they had only managed to store a total of twenty thousand units.
Based on the current rate of franchising, five hundred units per store would be nearly depleted. This was merely based on the current situation.
If the number of franchisees continued to increase, the reserve of twenty thousand units would clearly be insufficient.
To address this, Qin Chuan had to approach Ye Qingping again, urging him to expedite the promised low-interest loan of ten million yuan.
Upon learning that Xinhua Electronics Factory already had thirty-two franchisees, Ye Qingping was visibly shocked.
How had this happened so quickly? It was incredible!
Although he had high hopes for the Shendun storage lockers Qin Chuan had developed, he hadn't expected such rapid growth. The Lunar New Year wasn't even over yet, and they already had over thirty franchisees.
To verify the truth of the matter, Ye Qingping immediately called his sister.
When he finally hung up the phone, a chilling brilliance flashed deep within his eyes.
Qin Chuan smiled and said, "County Magistrate, you believe me now, right? Our product has truly taken off!"
"We urgently need that ten million yuan in funding to expand production."
Ye Qingping took a deep breath and made a phone call.
Shortly after, Secretary Wang Ping'an arrived.
Ye Qingping instructed him, "Go and accompany Qin Chuan to see Director Zhou at Postal Savings Bank."
"Understood, County Magistrate!"
Wang Ping'an nodded.
"Thank you, County Magistrate!"
Qin Chuan bowed in gratitude, filled with excitement.
With this ten million yuan, they would be able to increase the production of Shendun storage lockers, and there would be no more worries about insufficient output.
As the saying goes, "Having connections in the right places makes things easier."
With government backing, the bank processed the loan with remarkable speed. The ten million yuan loan was approved in less than a week.
Qin Chuan immediately transferred five million yuan into the electronics factory's account.
Concurrently, a meeting was convened with a single agenda: to focus all efforts on production.
Upon hearing that their boss had secured another five million yuan in funding, everyone below was invigorated, and their drive intensified.
Currently, everyone at Xinhua Electronics Factory knew that their product was truly popular, with people seeking to franchise every day.
In this climate, not only the leadership but also the ordinary workers were extremely happy and worked with great enthusiasm.
For any enterprise, regardless of its size, its products becoming popular and profitable is truly a cause for celebration for everyone involved.
If a factory consistently incurred losses and couldn't make ends meet, in such an environment, both management and ordinary workers would be affected.
Prosperity and decline were shared.
Just then, Qin Chuan's phone vibrated in his pocket; someone was calling.
"Alright, that's all for today's meeting!"
"Everyone, please return to your respective duties."
After everyone had left, Qin Chuan took out his phone and saw that it was Zheng Chengdao. He immediately called back.
"Brother Dao, what's up?"
Zheng Chengdao rarely called unless it was necessary, as they often met.
"Boss, Han Shifei is back!"
Before Qin Chuan could finish speaking, Zheng Chengdao dropped a bombshell.
"Oh? When did your people see that old geezer?"
Qin Chuan asked calmly.
"Not long ago."
"One of my subordinates was out wandering and happened to see a very luxurious motorcade entering the city. Inside was Han Shifei, whom we haven't seen in a while."
"And the person welcoming him was his brother, Han Shihong. The reception was grand."
Zheng Chengdao reported.
"That group entered Yongnan Grand Hotel. When my subordinate tried to follow, he found he couldn't get in. The place had been booked out."
"Boss, my subordinate mentioned that Han Shifei was accompanied by many unfamiliar faces."
"Unfamiliar faces?"
Qin Chuan's brow twitched slightly.
"Yes, unfamiliar faces."
"Boss, what should we do now?"
Zheng Chengdao inquired.
"Don't make any rash moves for now. Send more men to keep a distant watch."
Qin Chuan instructed.
"We are legitimate businessmen, and we believe in prosperity through peace. If the enemy doesn't move, we don't move. Understand?"
"I understand, Boss!"
Zheng Chengdao nodded and then hung up.
Qin Chuan lit a cigarette and smoked quietly in the conference room, his eyes particularly deep against the backdrop of the gently swirling smoke.